Votel

General Joseph Votel, the chief commander of the US Central Command, made the remarks while speaking to the media on a military airplane heading to the region on Sunday.

It’s through the Rangers that Votel got to know Joe “Kap” Kapacziewski, the first Ranger to go into combat with a prosthetic limb.

The top commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, Gen. Joseph Votel, told a Senate committee on Tuesday that of the 34,000 square miles of territory that the Islamic State group once held, it now controls less than 20 square miles.

Votel led the successful liberation of Iraq and Syria from the Islamic State.

Votel said the US withdrawal from Syria would be cautious and deliberate, and noted that IS are still not beaten.

Votel seemed to relish his opportunity to meet with the Bulldogs.

Army Gen. Joseph Votel, head of U.S. Central Command, told reporters traveling with him that the soldiers’ training is expected to last “several more days,” and then will transition to combined patrols.

Even as Trump dropped his Syria bombshell on Tuesday, Votel was detailing why a continued U.S. presence is essential to cement the defeat of the jihadis.

Gen. Joseph Votel, of U.S. Central Command, told reporters there is a "robust" coordination mechanism to avoid such friction.

Gen. Joseph Votel said the U.S. was "pretty confident that the Afghans will be able to maintain the situation down" in Kandahar.

Moreover, added Votel, when we defeat ISIS, we must stabilize Syria and see to its reconstruction.

The international coalition, led by the United States, is focused on providing the military pressure, in conjunction with social pressure and diplomatic pressure, that will force them to come to the table,” Votel said.

Votel also said the reconciliation plan doesn’t extend to Islamic State fighters in Afghanistan.

Votel said “several hundred” ISIS-K fighters surrendered to the Afghan National Defense Security Forces over the weekend in Jowzjan Province.

Votel urged feuding Gulf states to put aside their differences and unite against Iranian efforts to “destabilize” the region.

What a shock it must have been for General Votel to find out later that, at about the same time only a few miles away, President Trump was supplying a decidedly different vision to the White House press corps: “I want to get out.